WINONA, Minn. — After opening the season with a pair of games as part of the MIAC Men's Hockey Showcase, the Saint Mary's University men's hockey team returns home for a rare Thursday contest, playing host to UW-Stout in a 7:30 p.m. nonconference contest at the SMU Ice Arena.



The Matchup:
Saint Mary's Cardinals (0-2-0 Overall) vs.
UW-Stout Blue Devils (1-3-0 Overall)

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Last Action:
The Cardinals dropped a pair of games to open their season last weekend, falling to Augsburg (8-4) and Gustavus (2-1) at the MIAC Hockey Showcase in Blaine, Minn. UW-Stout, meanwhile, were also swept last weekend, as St. Norbert handed the Blue Devils 3-1 and 6-3 setbacks in De Pere, Wis.

A Year Ago — November 6, 2009:
UW-Stout scored just 38 seconds into the first period and never looked back pushing their lead to 5-0 after two periods en route to a 6-1 nonconference win over the Cardinals in Menomonie, Wis.

Saint Mary's Cardinals News and Notes:
The Cardinals' five goals last weekend came from five different players — Kevin Wentland (Columbia Heights, Minn.), Jimmy Becker (Wildomar, Calif.), Blake Zemaitis (Mount Prospect, Ill.), Brad Fusaro (Soldotna, Alaska) and Brad Denney (Fishers, Ind.). … The goals by Fusaro and Denny were the first of their collegiate careers. … Denny, Fusaro and Wentland also had assists over the weekend and share the team lead in points with two each. … Two of SMU's five goals at the MIAC Hockey Showcase came on the power-play, while the Cardinals' opponents scored five goals with the man advantage. … All three goals in Sunday's 2-1 loss to Gustavus were scored on the power-play. … Andy Scheib (Sun Prairie, Wis.) stopped 33 of the 35 shots he faced vs. the eighth-ranked Gusties on Sunday. … Thursday's game vs. UW-Stout is the first of five straight home games for the Cardinals, who do not go back on the road until Nov. 20, when they travel to Hamline for the first of six consecutive road games | 2010-2011 Statistics

UW-Stout Blue Devils News and Notes:
After opening the season with a 2-0 win over Concordia-Wis., the Blue Devils have dropped three straight. … UW-Stout entered the season having lost its all-time leading scoring line of Joel Gaulrapp (12 G, 15 A, 27 Pts), Derek Hanson (9 G, 16 A, 25 Pts) and Scott Motz (10 G, 17 A, 27 Pts) to graduation. Add to that the graduation of Andy Sternberg (11 G, 10 A, 22 Pts), and the Blue Devils lost their four leading scorers from a year ago. … The Blue Devils boast a roster than includes just two juniors and six seniors. … Tom Lescovich had 46 saves in a 3-1 loss at third-ranked St. Norbert last Friday... Lescovich has played all four games in goal for the Blue Devils, compiling a 3.76 goals-against-average and a .903 save percentage. … Branden Gay, Matt Morin and Danny Ryan have all scored two goals through four games, while Gay also leads the team in points with four. … Sixteen of the 20 Blue Devil players who have played this season have recorded at least one point. … UW-Stout's first six games are on the road, as are eight of the Blue Devils' first 10 | 2010-2011 Statistics